


Housing Problems

by shazamitylam



Category: Persona 3, Persona 4, Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Gen, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Roommates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-20
Updated: 2018-07-20
Packaged: 2019-06-13 12:00:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,659
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15364200
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shazamitylam/pseuds/shazamitylam
Summary: With housing situations gone awry, the Wild Cards of another universe become roommates.





	Housing Problems

“Hey! Minato!” Yukari’s urgent whisper broke through his consciousness, and Minato lifted his head off of his history textbook.  “The professor is going to catch you sleeping in class one of these days, you know.”

He just blinked at her, still half-awake. Yukari just sighed and turned away to face the front again, prompting a snicker from Junpei, who was sitting behind him.

“I don’t know why she bothers. I don't think anyone really cares about this class. Or at least, pays attention to it.”

“Still important, I guess,” Minato muttered, trying not to let his eyes glaze over as he looked up at the notes written on the board. Ignoring Junpei’s doubtful “Uh-huh,” he sighed and slipped his phone out of his pocket. Test next week...along with the end of the contract he had with his current landlord. Between schoolwork and his night job at the Chagall Cafe, he hadn’t had much time to look for another place to live. Mitsuru had suggested that he live in the dorms again, but…

 _Something different_ , he reminded himself. He was sure he could find someplace, and it’d be worth it.

 _“That’s surprisingly optimistic of you,”_ he could almost hear Hamuko’s voice saying in his head.

Minato put his phone down and rested his head on his arms. Twenty more minutes until the end of class...that was enough time for a nap.

...Or not. “Arisato!” the professor called out. “Why don’t you open your eyes and tell me what the name of the first Roman emperor was?”

 _Shit._ Minato stood and racked his brain. He was sure he’d read this in his book before… “Augustus.”

The professor curled his lips in displeasure. “Correct. But save the naps for after class.”

He sat down again with a soft sigh of relief. No penalty this time.

“Dude, that was _close_!” Junpei whispered, and he nodded silently. He’d have to make sure not to get caught next time.

The rest of class went without a hitch, and Minato exited the room with a stifled yawn. He and Hamuko had had to deal with a couple of unscrupulous customers the night before. Add that to the last-minute homework he’d completed, he was feeling more tired than usual.

“Can I say, ‘I told you so’?”

Junpei groaned and answered for him. “No, Yuka-tan. Give him a break.”

Yukari gave Minato a small smile to let him know she was joking. “You sound personally offended, Junpei. Don’t tell me you’ve been sleeping in class, too.”

“Hey! I listen in class. Sometimes.”

“ _Sometimes?_ ”

“Arisato.”

The three of them paused and looked up to find Mitsuru walking toward them. “Have you found a place to live yet? You have a week left, if I remember correctly.”

Minato shook his head. “I’ll spend the next few days looking.”

Mitsuru nodded. “All right. But if it comes down to it, the offer still stands. After all, your twin is still living in the dorms, as well.”

 _I’m not Hamuko,_ he thought. Not that being like his twin was a bad thing. He loved Hamuko. And she was the only family he had left after...well.

“I know,” he said instead. “Thank you.”

He watched as Mitsuru walked away as fast as she had approached him, turning away once she turned a corner. Now, where would he look…?

Yukari pursed her lips. “You know, she’s still kind of intimidating, even though we live in the same dorm as her.”

“Harsh and beautiful,” Junpei muttered. Was that red on his cheeks? “Just my type.”

Yukari shoved him, rolling her eyes. “ _Everyone’s_ your type, Stupei.”

“Is not!”

“Is too!”

The two of them bickered all they way to the dining hall, and Minato slipped away after giving them a small, awkward wave.

Right. He’d head to the library first. Surely the internet would show him some results. The only problem would be how trustworthy those results would be.

Saori greeted him when he entered the library. “Hello, Minato. Do you know if Hamuko is coming to the committee meeting today?”

Minato nodded. “She texted me that she would after her last class, which should be…” he checked his phone, “in an hour.”

Saori smiled at him. “Thank you. What did you need today?”

Huh. He didn’t like telling too many people about his living situation, but maybe Saori could help… “I’m looking for a place to live.”

“Oh, there are sure to be posts on the school social media about people looking for roommates! Is that what you mean?”

Minato frowned. He had been in a single room when he’d lived in a dorm, and his current apartment roommate was absent most of the time; Minato was pretty sure that wasn’t the standard roommate experience. “...Yeah.”

“Would you like to use your laptop to do a search? Or maybe Fuuka can help you if you want some specifics.”

“Fuuka?”

“Fuuka Yamagishi. She’s good with searching for stuff! She’ll probably be in the home economics building.”

Minato picked at the hem of his shirt. Of course he’d want specifics. Knowing nothing about his future roommate sounded...scary. Unappealing. “Thanks,” he said. “Say hi to Ham for me.”

“I will.” Saori waved at him as he left the library.

Home economics...where was that, again? Minato sighed to himself. He’d never had a reason to go there, had he?

He pulled out his phone and quickly typed in search terms for the home economics building of his college. _Turn left after 10 meters. Then turn right after 15 meters._

Ugh...walking in the cold. He dropped his bag, stuffed his arms into his coat, and picked it up again. He tried to look as inconspicuous as possible while holding his phone with the navigation on. With how long he’d been at the school, this was kind of embarrassing.

When he reached the building, he rushed in to get away from the cold, only to almost bump into another student. They were only saved by the other man’s quick reflexes, sidestepping to avoid colliding.

“Sorry about that. Cold outside,” Minato explained. The student smiled a little in understanding. Now that his glasses weren’t flashing, Minato could see that his eyes were a sharp gray. His hair was fluffy and dark, and Minato thought he could reasonably be called “good-looking".

“It’s okay. Stay warm,” he said, waving as he stepped outside.

Hm. Minato had never seen him around before. Then again, he didn’t exactly hang around this part of campus, either.

He glanced around at the hall and bit at his lower lip. This building was what, three floors?

“Excuse me?” A girl with light blue hair walked up to him with a curious look. “Are you looking for something?”

Well...he might as well ask. “Someone, actually. Do you know a Fuuka Yamagishi?”

Her eyes lit up in surprise. “Oh! That’s me. How can I help you?”

Minato allowed himself a brief internal cheer. That was faster than he’d expected. “I was wondering if you could help me look for somewhere to live. Saori from the library said you were good at finding specifics.”

“Sure! Let’s find an empty room, and you can tell me your preferences.”

Minato followed her to a room at the end of the hall and took his laptop out of his bag. Inputting his password quickly, he stepped aside and let Fuuka take the seat.

“So...what are you looking for in an apartment? And a roommate?”

He described his current apartment and tried to consider what he sought in a roommate. Or at least, someone he’d tolerate. Like a friend?

“Someone who doesn’t mind me staying up late,” he murmured to himself, but Fuuka seemed to hear him, as she began typing. “Doesn’t mind pets. Not too...nosy.”

Fuuka glanced at him uncertainly. “I’m not sure that’s the kind of thing people lost, but...let’s see.”

She hit _enter_ and came up with zero results. “Well...I suppose most people would have found roommates by now. There probably aren’t that many openings left.” She gave him an apologetic look. “Let me fix the search.”

One result popped up on screen. “...Souji Seta?” He read the profile and the apartment description. Twenty-one years old. Performance major. “Seems okay.” Not like he had much of a choice.

Fuuka rose from the seat and gestured to it. “Do you want to send him a message?”

Minato sat down and took a deep breath. Making a good first impression could be...difficult. How did one go about doing it?

_Hello, Seta-san._

Too formal? Just _Souji_ was too familiar, though.

_Hello,_

_I saw your post looking for a roommate and was wondering if you would mind living with me?_

...That sounded kind of awkward, didn’t it? He pursed his lips and hit the backspace key.

_I saw your post about getting a roommate, and I was wondering if...fuuuuck_

Minato stared at the screen in disbelief. This should not be so hard, so why was he struggling with such a short and simple message?

Simple. Right. He’d keep it simple.

_Hello,_

_I saw your post about looking for a roommate. I am in search of a new apartment and a roommate, as well. Would you like to discuss further details? I will attach a link to my profile._

_Thank you,_

_Minato Arisato_

There. Sent. “Sorry about that,” he said, realizing Fuuka was still standing behind him.

She smiled at him. “It’s okay. I understand. I hope I was of some help.”

He stood and closed his laptop, putting it back in his bag. “You were. Thank you.” He hesitantly offered her a hand, which she shook lightly. “I’ll, um, see you around,” he told her before leaving. She gave him a small wave and went off toward the stairs, and he pushed open the doors to the building with a soft sigh. Now he just needed to wait for a response from Souji Seta.


End file.
